


An Unexpected Greeting

by kimirce



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: A hint of Amourshipping, Ash has a weird life, Battle Frontier, Friendship, Gen, Getting to Know Each Other, Humor, Old Friends, Reveal, alola region, ash knows champions, ash surprises people, cynthia visits alola, frontier brain, kinda dialogue heavy, kukui learns things about Ash's past, like two sentences worth
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-17
Updated: 2020-12-18
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:40:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25373284
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kimirce/pseuds/kimirce
Summary: The Champion of the Sinnoh region visits Alola, and while there, she agrees to participate in an exhibition match. Professor Kukui manages to score tickets to the match for himself and his students, and they are all immeasurably excited to attend.After the battle is over, the Professor and his students run into Champion Cynthia herself - and she quickly shocks them all when she greets Ash and Pikachu like old friends.
Relationships: Ash Ketchum & Kiawe & Lana & Lillie & Mallow & Sophocles, Kukui-hakase | Professor Kukui & Satoshi | Ash Ketchum, Satoshi | Ash Ketchum & Shirona | Cynthia
Comments: 132
Kudos: 703





	1. Chapter 1

It was the end of the day at the Pokémon School, and the students were packing up to leave, chattering happily with each other.

“Before everyone heads out, I have an announcement to make,” Professor Kukui said. The students paused in their actions.

“What is it, Professor?” Mallow asked curiously.

Professor Kukui smiled. “I found out yesterday that the Champion of the Sinnoh region will be participating in an exhibition battle in Hau’oli City tomorrow, and I managed to score us seats!”

The students exclaimed in excitement.

“The Champion of the Sinnoh region?” Kiawe asked. “I bet he’s really strong.”

“She,” Professor Kukui and Ash corrected at the same time.

Ash grinned at Kiawe. “Cynthia _is_ really strong,” he said. “Her Garchomp’s amazing.”

“You’ve seen her battle before, Ash?” Professor Kukui asked.

Ash chuckled. “Yep,” he said.

“Wow, this is so exciting!” Mallow said. “We’re going to see a Champion battle in person!”

Lillie looked down at Snowy held securely in her arms. “Does that sound fun, Snowy?”

Snowy cooed happily up at her.

“I think that’s a yes,” Mallow laughed.

Lillie pursed her lips. “It does sound very interesting,” she said. “But there will be a lot of people there, won’t there? And Snowy has never really been around crowds…”

Mallow put a hand on her shoulder. “Snowy will be fine,” she reassured Lillie.

“Yeah!” Ash agreed. “And we’ll all be right there with you. We’ll make sure Snowy feels comfortable the whole time.”

Lillie looked at her friends, and her face brightened. “Right!”

“Hm,” Sophocles said, petting Togedemaru. “I wonder if she has any electric-type Pokémon.”

“Or any water-types,” Lana added.

“She has a Milotic,” Ash said. “But I don’t think she has any electric-type Pokémon. Sorry, Sophocles.”

Sophocles drooped. “Aw,” he said. “It would have been fun to see a Champion battle with an electric-type. Oh, well.”

Professor Kukui laughed. “It’s going to be a wonderful experience, regardless of what Pokémon she uses,” he said. “I just wanted you all to be prepared. Make sure you’re on time tomorrow, because we’ll be heading out to Hau’oli fairly early.”

The students nodded in agreement.

“Alright,” Kukui said. “Everyone can go now.”

“Bye, Professor!” Mallow called.

“See you tomorrow!” said Sophocles.

Ash headed out of the room with Kiawe, as they had plans to train together after school. “I’ll see you at home, Ash,” Kukui called after him.

Ash spun. “Right! See ya, Professor.” He turned to Kiawe. “Let’s go!”

The two of them nearly ran out of the school. Kukui shook his head fondly. Those two really loved battling. Then he snorted. It wasn’t as if he had any room to talk.

*

When Ash got back to the house around dusk, he was pretty wiped out. Kukui smiled at him as he came through the door. “How was training with Kiawe?” he asked.

Ash perked up. “It was great!”

“Pika pika!” Pikachu enthused.

Then they both wilted. “We’re pretty tired, though,” Ash admitted with a laugh.

“Pika,” Pikachu agreed.

Kukui smiled at them. “Then you should probably get some rest,” he said. “We have a big day tomorrow. Just make sure you eat something!”

Ash made a noise of agreement, and went to rifle through the fridge. A moment later, he poked his head up to look at Kukui. “Where’s Professor Burnet?” he asked.

“She had to stay late at work,” Kukui answered.

“Oh,” Ash said, and returned to the food. Then, he pulled away again. “Is she coming with us tomorrow?”

“Hm?” Kukui said, having returned to his work. “Oh. No, I’m afraid not. She’s busy.”

“That’s too bad,” Ash said.

“Yeah,” Kukui agreed. “I’m sure she’d love to watch Champion Cynthia battle.”

Ash hummed, and finally pulled out some food for himself and his Pokémon.

A little while later, he headed up the stairs, his Pokémon clustered around him. Distantly, Kukui heard him talking to Pikachu. “Are you excited to see Cynthia again, Pikachu?”

“Kaa,” Pikachu replied.

Kukui could hear the smile in Ash’s voice as he replied. “Yeah, me too. Tomorrow will be a good day…” he drifted into a yawn. “Good night, Professor!” he called.

“Night, Ash!” Kukui replied. He should really head to sleep soon too, Kukui mused. _Just one more paper,_ he told himself. _We’ve got a lot to look forward to in the morning._

*

One of the performance stadiums in Hau’oli had been refitted with a battlefield, as it was the only place large enough to hold all the people who wanted to see Cynthia battle. The crowds were incredible. Kukui kept counting and recounting all of his students to make sure he hadn’t lost anyone. Luckily, everyone stayed close as they made their way to their seats.

“So who will Cynthia be battling against, Professor?” Ash asked.

“Another powerful trainer from Sinnoh,” Kukui replied. He looked around at his students. “Have any of you heard of the Battle Frontier?”

All the students shook their heads no, except for Ash, whose countenance immediately brightened. “So she’s going to be battling one of the Brains?”

Kukui blinked at him.

“Brains?” Mallow asked, confusion clear in her voice.

“Yeah!” Ash said. “The trainers in charge of the Battle Frontier are called Frontier Brains. They’re _tough._ This is gonna be a good match.”

Kiawe snorted. “Frontier Brains? Now _that_ is a strange-sounding title.” The other students nodded in agreement.

Ash grinned at them. “You’ll get over it when you see how strong the Brain is,” he said confidently.

Kukui was a little surprised that Ash knew what the Battle Frontier was, as they weren’t well-known even in the regions that had them. But, given that it was Ash, he supposed it shouldn’t be that much of a surprise.

“Frontier Brains are notoriously reclusive,” Kukui told the rest of the students. “In fact, trainers can only challenge a Battle Frontier if they receive an invitation to do it, so most people never get the chance. It should be quite a treat to see this one battle.” He looked at Ash. “Have you gotten to see a Frontier Brain battle before, Ash?” Kukui asked, curious. Earlier, he’d sounded as if he were speaking from experience.

Ash was focused on the arena below, where the referee was stepping up. “Hm?" He refocused on them. "Oh, yeah, totally,” he said. “I challenged the Kanto Battle Frontier a couple years ago. It was pretty awesome.”

Kiawe’s brow furrowed. “Didn’t you say you have to be invited to challenge a Battle Frontier?” he asked the Professor.

Kukui nodded as they all stared at Ash, who was oblivious to their gazes.

“Ash, you were invited to challenge these really powerful trainers?” Kiawe demanded.

Ash blinked at him. “Yeah,” he said. “I’d never even heard of the Battle Frontier before Scott showed up and offered me the chance to challenge it.”

Kukui was opening his mouth to ask how far Ash had gotten, when Ash waved a hand at them. “Oh, look, it’s starting!”

Hala stepped up to a podium. “Welcome, everyone,” he said into a microphone. “Today we are honored to witness a very special battle between two guests that we welcome to our island. Please welcome Arcade Star Dahlia from the Sinnoh Battle Frontier, and Cynthia, the Champion of the Sinnoh region!”

The crowd roared with applause. Two women walked out on either side of the battlefield. One of the women was tanned and dressed in yellow, with long black hair that she wore clipped back. As she walked onto the field, she waved excitedly at all the people.

The other woman was more reserved and quite elegant. Her hair was long and blonde, and the way it fell concealed part of her face. She wore all black. Though she did not show the enthusiasm of her opponent, she looked completely confident and unbothered by the crowd.

“So,” Mallow said, “the blonde one is the Frontier Brain and the one in yellow is the Champion, right?”

“Nope!” Ash answered. “Other way around.”

Sophocles looked down at the woman waving vigorously to the crowd skeptically. “I thought you said Frontier Brains were notoriously reclusive,” he said to Professor Kukui. “She doesn’t look reclusive.”

Kukui shrugged, and so did Ash.

Their attention returned to the field, where the referee was laying out the rules. “This will be a three-on-three battle. Neither trainer will be allowed to substitute Pokémon. The battle will be over when all three Pokémon on either side are unable to battle. Trainers, select your first Pokémon!”

Cynthia’s lips quirked. She tossed a Pokéball onto the field. “Get ready, Glaceon!”

A Glaceon emerged onto the field.

“Huh,” Ash said. “She usually uses Garchomp first.”

 _Usually?_ Professor Kukui thought. Well, Ash had traveled a lot. Maybe he’d seen Champion Cynthia battle a few times before.

“Pika,” Pikachu agreed.

“Wow,” Lillie said. “It’s beautiful!”

“It looks kind of like Snowy,” Lana said.

“It is an ice-type Pokémon, just like Snowy,” Professor Kukui said. “It’s one of the possible evolutions of Eevee.”

Dahlia smiled at Cynthia, and spun flamboyantly before tossing out her own Pokéball. “Ludicolo, let’s do this!” she said.

The Pokémon that emerged looked…well, ridiculous. It was bright yellow and green, with an appendage on its head that looked a great deal like a wide-brimmed hat.

“Ludicolo, ludicolo,” it said, stepping side to side as though it was dancing, then it waved at the crowd as enthusiastically as its trainer had.

“Is Ludicolo a grass-type, Professor?” Lillie asked.

“Yes,” said Professor Kukui. “But it’s also a water-type.”

“So it’s a water and grass-type against an ice-type,” Kiawe summarized.

“And interesting match-up for sure,” Professor Kukui said.

Lana folded her hands beneath her chin and stared at the Ludicolo, then laughed a little. “It’s a pretty funny Pokémon,” she said.

Ash laughed too. “Yeah, it is, isn’t it?”

Below, Ludicolo and Dahlia spun and raised their arms to the sky, perfectly synchronized. “It looks like they’re dancing,” Mallow said curiously.

“It does,” Professor Kukui agreed. “As a rule, most Ludicolo enjoy dancing,” he explained to his students. “They’re something of a favorite among trainers who are also dancers.”

“I know a trainer who made dancing part of his battle style,” Ash said. “He had a Ludicolo too.” He huffed a laugh. “It was a pretty hard style to counter, actually.”

“That sounds pretty interesting,” Professor Kukui said.

Kiawe’s brow furrowed. “I don’t understand how that would work,” he said.

Ash shrugged. “It would probably make more sense if you saw it,” he said. “I don’t think I could explain it very well.”

Mallow flapped a hand at them. “Guys, shush!” she said.

They all returned their attention to the field. The referee raised his hand, then brought it down. “Battle begin!”

*

The battle had been fantastic. Dahlia had lost, as it had taken both her Ludicolo and Medicham to take out Glaceon. Cynthia had then brought out her Garchomp, and it had soundly beaten both Medicham and Dahlia’s third Pokémon, a Togekiss. Togekiss had gotten in a really good hit on Garchomp using hyperbeam, though.

All in all, Kukui and the students were very impressed. The students chattered enthusiastically about the battle as they slowly made their way out of the stadium. From the sound of it, Kiawe was extremely enamored with Garchomp. _Understandably,_ Kukui thought, amused. Garchomp’s power had been pretty incredible.

As they left the stadium, they noticed a knot of shouting, excited people. “I wonder what’s happening over there,” Mallow said.

“Let’s go find out,” said Professor Kukui.

As they drew closer, they noticed that there were many people with cameras and microphones in the crowd. 

“Reporters?” Kiawe asked.

“Looks like it,” said Lana. Through the crowd, she caught a glimpse of blonde hair. “Oh! I think Champion Cynthia is in there!”

“Let’s go closer and see!” Sophocles said, and began to move forward, but Professor Kukui stopped him. 

“We can go look if you would like,” the Professor said, “but let’s make sure we don’t harass her.”

The students nodded in agreement, and made their way closer to the group of fans and reporters.

Champion Cynthia was answering some of questions that were being asked, while a woman that Kukui assumed was her manager or publicist or something was holding off the worst of the fans. Dahlia stood at the Champion’s side, but was ignoring the reporters entirely. 

Some people in the crowd knocked into a nearby stand, and one of the shelves tilted dangerously. Ash spotted a young Stufful sitting right where the shelf would fall, and ran forward, heedless of anything else. He scooped up the Stufful and tucked it into his chest, just as the entire stand came crashing down. In his urgency, Ash had accidentally knocked out the stand’s supports and the crowd’s shoving had knocked the unstable stand down. 

Stufful wriggled out of his arms and ran to a nearby woman, who caught it and held it close. 

“Thanks,” she said. 

“You’re welcome,” Ash said, “but I’m sorry about...this,” he gestured to the mess. 

“It’s alright,” the woman assured him. “Nothing’s permanently damaged.”

The clatter had drawn the Champion’s attention, and she ignored the reporters surrounding her as she made her way closer to the collapsed stand, until she was standing behind the boy who was apologizing to the stand’s owner. The crowd murmured in confusion.

Mallow gaped. “Ash,” she hissed. “The Champion’s behind you!”

“What?” Ash looked at Mallow, having not heard what she’d said. Mallow took a breath, preparing to repeat herself in whisper-screaming, when the Champion said something she could never have expected.

“Ash?”

The reporters froze.

“Huh?” Ash turned, then brightened. “Hey Cynthia! Long time, no see!”

Whispers ran through the crowd, shocked by this boy who greeted the Champion of the Sinnoh region with such familiarity. Behind Cynthia’s shoulder, Dahlia peered curiously at the boy.

Cynthia laughed, walking closer to Ash. “I see you haven’t changed much at all,” she said, brushing a bit of debris off his shoulder, then raising a hand to pet Pikachu. 

“Pika pika!” Pikachu chirped, nuzzling into her hand. 

“Yes, it’s good to see you as well, Pikachu,” Cynthia said with a smile. 

“Pikaaa,” Pikachu responded.

Ash appeared totally oblivious to the shocked gazes that surrounded him. He smiled brightly at Cynthia. “You haven’t changed much either. You’re as strong as ever! That was an amazing battle!”

“Thank you! I wish I’d known you would be here to watch. I didn’t even know you were in Alola.” She pouted for a second, then smiled again. “Last I heard you were in Kalos. I saw your battles in the Lumiose Conference, you know. I was very impressed.”

Ash blushed. “Well, I didn’t win,” he said. 

Cynthia raised an eyebrow. “You lost that final by a hair,” she said. “That Greninja of yours is very strong! Garchomp and I would love to battle you two sometime.”

“We’d love that!” Ash said, but his expression faltered. “Except, well, Greninja had to stay behind in Kalos, after everything...”

“Oh,” Cynthia said, wilting a bit, but with understanding in her eyes. “That’s too bad. Diantha told me you two gave her and Gardevoir a run for their money.”

“I don’t know about that,” Ash said, putting a hand bashfully to the back of his head. Then, he looked up at Cynthia with determined excitement. “One day we’ll have that battle with you and Garchomp for sure,” he promised. 

Cynthia smiled. “I’ll hold you to that,” she said. She peered beyond him to look at his awestruck classmates. “Are these your new friends?” she asked. 

“Oh yeah!” Ash said. “I’m attending the Pokémon School here. That’s our teacher, Professor Kukui, and these are my classmates: Kiawe, Lana, Lillie, Mallow, and Sophocles!”

Cynthia tilted her head and smiled at the students and their teacher. “It’s a pleasure to meet all of you! Any friend of Ash’s is a friend of mine.”

Kukui’s eyes were very wide, and for a moment he just stared, before he remembered himself. “The pleasure is really all ours,” he said. “It’s an honor to meet you, Champion Cynthia.”

The students nodded in awestruck agreement, and then Mallow elbowed Ash in the side. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell us you knew Champion Cynthia!” she exclaimed quietly.

Ash rubbed his head sheepishly as Cynthia laughed, and that was when the crowd regained its senses.

“Champion Cynthia!” someone shouted. “How do you know this boy?”

Someone else shoved a microphone into Ash’s face, and he stared at it in bewilderment. “How do you know Champion Cynthia?”

Ash blinked. “Uh…”

“What is your connection to the Champion of the Sinnoh region?” another reporter demanded.

The woman accompanying Cynthia stepped in front of Ash, fending the reporters off. She looked at Cynthia. “I think it’s time for us to go,” she said.

Cynthia nodded in agreement. She tapped the earpiece she wore, and spoke. “Jervis, could you come to pick us up now?” She looked at Kukui. “Would you and your students like to come with us? My butler will be here in a moment to get us out of these crowds.”

Kukui considered the situation. Next to him, Lillie was cringing and clutching Snowy tightly. Snowy was curled up into her chest, trying to hide from the crowd. The rest of his students were in varying states of discomfort. They needed to leave. “We would be glad to, Champion Cynthia.”

Cynthia smiled and nodded, ignoring the shouts of the crowd. “And Jervis,” she said, “we’ll have some guests.”

Kukui gathered his students close. Dahlia, who had been watching the situation with interest and then growing disdain, stepped between Lillie and a man with a camera, giving him a hard glare.

A limousine pulled around the corner, and as it came closer, Cynthia beckoned them all towards it. “Come on,” she called, raising her voice to be heard.

The woman who had defended Ash – the publicist or whatever she was – went to open the door of the car, and everyone piled in. Thankfully, there was plenty of room for all of them inside the spacious limousine, and everyone sighed in relief as the woman climbed in last and closed the door behind her.

“Thank you, June,” said Cynthia.

June nodded in acknowledgement. “I’ll have to send a statement to the press about what just happened,” she said, then smiled apologetically at Kukui. “It’s really no big deal,” she promised. “It will blow over quickly.”

Kukui gave her a slightly strained smile in return. “I’ll take your word for it,” he replied.

Cynthia huffed a laugh. “Well,” she said, “that was not exactly the ideal circumstance for a reunion.”

Ash laughed too. “At least we’re out of there now,” he said, looking out the window as the streets passed by. He leaned over Kiawe to get closer the rearview mirror. “Hey, Jervis!”

The older man in the front smiled at the reflection he saw. “Hello, Ash.” His gaze flicked to Cynthia, and he raised a questioning eyebrow.

Cynthia smiled and shook her head. “No, we didn’t know Ash would be here,” she said. “Just a happy coincidence.”

“Ah,” said Jervis, and returned his focus to the road.

Kukui cleared his throat. “Where are we going?”

Cynthia tilted her head. “Well, we have reservations at a resort on Akala Island,” she said. “So that’s where the four of us will be heading tonight. In the meantime, though, maybe you and your students could show us some of the sights here on Melemele?” She paused. “Only if you want to, of course, though I’d like to catch up with Ash, and get to know you all a bit more!”

Kukui blinked, slightly dumbfounded. Just how close _were_ Ash and Champion Cynthia? Ash was a strong trainer who had competed in multiple leagues, so it had been surprising, though not exactly far-fetched that he knew a Champion. But knowing a Champion in passing was much different than actively spending time with one and greeting her butler by name.

All the same, Kukui saw no reason to say no, especially as all the students looked quite excited by the prospect. “I don’t see why not,” he said.

“Yes!” Ash said, and turned to Cynthia. “Have you tried the malasadas yet?”

“The what?” asked Cynthia.

“They’re these like, donut-y pastries,” Ash tried to explain. “They’re really sweet, and super good!”

Cynthia’s eyes lit up. “I do love sweet things,” she agreed.

“Then, how about we get malasadas first?” Mallow suggested, a bit hesitant, but excited. “We could go get some from my family’s restaurant.”

Kukui nodded. “I think that’s an excellent idea,” he said.

“I’m in,” Dahlia said.

There were nods of agreement all around. “Sounds like we have a plan!” said Kukui.

“Jervis?” Cynthia asked.

“We will be on our way in a moment,” Jervis replied.

Mallow, Ash, and Sophocles began to expound on the sugary delights of malasadas, seconded by the other students. Cynthia smiled fondly as she listened.

Kukui glanced between Cynthia and Ash. He really wanted to know exactly how his boarder was so familiar with a Champion – and why he had never mentioned it. Hopefully, by the end of the day, he wouldn’t be quite so in the dark.

He smiled wryly. _Burnet is going to be sorry she missed this._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought about writing out Cynthia and Dahlia's entire battle, but then I decided I didn't really want to bother and that the battle really isn't the point of this story anyway. Also, I feel like I'm not juggling all the different characters present very well, but whatever.
> 
> I should mention that I know next to nothing about Dahlia - I don't play the games, so I just looked up the Sinnoh Battle Frontier and picked a Brain that looked interesting. As such, my interpretation of her character is based solely on the Wiki page about her. [Here's a picture of her](https://cdn.bulbagarden.net/upload/9/9d/Platinum_Dahlia.png).
> 
> **Next time, some of Ash and Cynthia's history is revealed, and Dahlia realizes Ash is _that_ kid.**
> 
> I'm on [tumblr](https://kimirce.tumblr.com/) if anyone wants to come say hi - or to check out the [Pokémon fic snippets](https://kimirce.tumblr.com/search/pokemon+fic+snippet) I've posted there!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! It's been a little while, so I'm really excited to share this chapter with you! I know my updates are terribly inconsistent, so thanks for sticking with me!

“Oh, this is delicious!” Cynthia said, sighing over her malasada.

Mallow lit up with pride. “Thank you!”

Upon their arrival at Aina’s Kitchen, Mallow’s father Abe had been struck dumb for a few seconds at the presence of _Champion Cynthia_ in his restaurant. Once he’d snapped out of it, he had immediately set to frying a fresh batch of malasadas – they were always best right out of the pan, and there was no way he would serve anything less than his best to a Champion.

Fifteen minutes later, the motley group of people and Pokémon were happily munching on the delicious treats. Abe had provided an assortment of flavors and fillings – plain malasadas topped with sugar, with cinnamon, or with cream; glazed malasadas filled with chocolate or with guava; and lastly, malasadas with a pecha and sitrus berry filling that Cynthia seemed to find particularly delightful. She scooped extra sugar and cream on top of hers and immediately got to the business of devouring them.

Ash snorted as he saw her do this. “I know you have a sweet-tooth, but I almost forgot how much extra sugar you add.”

Cynthia pointed a fork at him. “You have no room to talk,” she told him. “I’ve seen you and Pikachu eat fries literally _smothered_ in ketchup.”

Pikachu rubbed its head abashedly. “Pika pika…”

Kukui had seen Ash and Pikachu do exactly that several times. It was interesting to hear Cynthia bring it up, though. Across the table, he saw Dahlia watching, looking as fascinated as he felt.

“You put ice cream on your _waffles,”_ Ash retorted. “I think Cilan was losing his mind a little every time he saw you do that.”

“I must concur with young Ash,” Jervis said. Cynthia had coaxed him out of the car to try some malasadas. “Ice cream is not a breakfast food.”

“The data supports that statement,” said Rotom Dex, hovering in front of Cynthia to show her a number of charts.

Cynthia rolled her eyes, then laughed. “Maybe not, but it tastes good.”

“Who’s Cilan?” Mallow asked.

“My friend,” Ash answered. “We used to travel together, when I was in Unova.”

“Is that where you and Cynthia met?” Lana asked, looking between them.

Ash and Cynthia shook their heads. “No,” Cynthia said. “We met in Sinnoh a few years back, and just happened to run into each other while I was in Unova for the summer. I have a villa in Undella Town,” she explained. “Ash, Cilan, and a couple other friends stayed there with me for a while.”

That statement was met with wide eyes. The first shock of _‘Ash knows Champion Cynthia’_ had largely worn off, but it was still surprising to hear that they were close enough that Ash had stayed at the Champion’s villa with her.

 _That explains why they know each other’s eating habits,_ Kukui thought.

“So then how did you meet?” Sophocles asked, curious.

“Uh…” Ash thought for a second. “It was near those ruins,” he said. “North of Hearthome City?” he looked at Cynthia.

Cynthia nodded. “Amity Square,” she confirmed.

“Paul – one of my rivals – challenged Cynthia to a battle. After he lost, he and I got into an argument, and Cynthia stepped in to stop us.” Ash explained.

“I didn’t really get to know Ash and his friends until a couple months later,” Cynthia said. “But that’s a really long story.”

Several people at the table were quite interested in hearing this story, whatever it was, but neither Ash nor Cynthia seemed inclined to share. The table went quiet, and Kukui busied himself with reaching for another malasada.

In the midst of the awkward silence, Sophocles fidgeted, and glanced at Mallow. She shrugged at him.

“So,” Sophocles started, a little too loudly, “uh, Ms. Dahlia?”

Dahlia started from her position of gazing contemplatively at Ash to focus on Sophocles.

“Hm? Oh – Sophocles, was it?”

Sophocles’ cheeks pinked, as he felt suddenly embarrassed and nervous. “Yes ma’am!” he said.

Dahlia raised an eyebrow. “Just Dahlia is fine.”

Sophocles nodded quickly. “Okay, Dahlia.”

She stared at him expectantly, and he stared back, confused. Dahlia tilted her head. “Did…you want to ask me something?”

“Oh! Uh, yes,” said Sophocles. “I wanted to ask you what it’s like being a Frontier Brain. What do you do?”

“Oh, yes,” Lillie chimed in. “We only heard about the Battle Frontier for the first time today. I’m quite curious as well!”

Kiawe, who hadn’t found any words to say since they had arrived at the restaurant, nodded in agreement with Mallow.

Kiawe was probably Kukui’s least talkative student, but it wasn’t quite like him to be this silent, Kukui thought. Though, if he had to guess, based on the way Kiawe had been eyeing Champion Cynthia… Kukui rather thought Kiawe was trying to figure out how to ask her to battle him. That Garchomp’s power had left quite an impression on him.

Dahlia exchanged an amused look with Cynthia, and tapped a finger to her chin.

“Well,” she said, “in some ways, it’s a lot like being a gym leader. I battle challengers, and I try to help them become better trainers. And, I have plenty of spare time to pursue my own interests. I guess that’s the main difference from being a gym leader – we get significantly fewer challengers, and we never get newbies. Also, we don’t operate under the League umbrella, so there are certain restrictions we don’t have to follow and responsibilities we don’t have.”

“That makes sense,” Kiawe said thoughtfully, breaking his silence. “You get fewer challengers, and all of them have experience, because trainers can’t challenge you without an invitation.”

Dahlia nodded. “Right. I do battle people outside of the Battle Arcade, but official challengers have to be invited.”

“That’s interesting,” said Mallow. “I’ve never heard of something that works like that before.”

Dahlia shrugged. “It’s because the Frontier is privately run. It’s a good gig. I get to meet plenty of interesting people, but I’m never overrun with challengers.”

“And it’s quite prestigious,” Cynthia added. “The Battle Frontier doesn’t get the kind of attention that the Leagues do, but Frontier Brains are respected as some of the most capable battlers around.”

Dahlia chuckled. “But not good enough to beat you,” she pointed out.

Cynthia smiled indulgently, and winked.

*

After they all finished eating, it took awhile for the group to figure out where to go next. But after Cynthia and Dahlia expressed interest in the Pokémon School, it was decided that they would head there. Lana suggested that they walk rather than take the car, so that Cynthia and Dahlia could see a bit more of the island – this was met with enthusiastic agreement.

June reminded everyone that she had work to do, and so she decided to leave with Jervis. Jervis made sure to remind Cynthia and Dahlia to let him know where to pick them up later.

“Don’t forget our ferry leaves at 8:00!” June chimed in as she got in the car.

“I know, June,” said Cynthia. “Thank you.”

The limousine drove off.

“Alright, let’s get going!” Professor Kukui said.

They began the walk to the Pokémon School. Cynthia fell in next to Ash and Mallow.

“Those malasadas really were amazing,” Cynthia told Mallow. “I know your father was very busy, but please give him my compliments next time you see him.”

Mallow flushed with pleasure, smiling brightly. “I will, for sure! He’ll be so happy to hear it!”

“Make sure you give him mine too,” Dahlia said. “Those chocolate malasadas were _wonderful.”_

“Of course!” Mallow said.

“My favorites are the vanilla cream malasadas,” Sophocles said.

“I really like the traditional ones,” Lillie said. “Just with the powdered sugar? But the pecha and sitrus berry filled ones are very good as well.”

Lana spread her hands. “I couldn’t pick a favorite – they’re all the best!”

Kiawe shrugged. “I like the chocolate ones too,” he said, nodding to Dahlia, who gave him a smile.

Cynthia tapped her chin. “You know, I bet Dawn would love those berry fillings,” she said to Ash.

Ash nodded. “Either those or the guava, I think,” he said, and snorted. “She’d probably try to make them.”

“Well, her poffins are very good,” Cynthia pointed out.

“But whenever she tries to make something other than poffins or cookies, something always goes wrong,” Ash said.

Cynthia chuckled. “I’ll take your word for it. Have you heard from her at all lately?”

“Not that recently,” Ash said. “She called me a couple months ago after she ran into my friend Serena. I think that was the last time we talked.”

“I remember that!” said Rotom Dex. “You spoke with her for one hour and six minutes.”

“Oh, yes,” Cynthia said, ignoring Rotom Dex. “Your friend Serena.”

Listening, Kukui noticed that Cynthia put a peculiar subtle emphasis on the word friend.

“Dawn mentioned her to me. I understand she’s a very lovely and talented young woman.” Cynthia looked at Ash with a knowing twinkle in her eye.

Inexplicably, Ash blushed, his cheeks turning faintly red. “Yeah, Serena’s great,” he said.

Cynthia smiled slyly, then laughed. The red on Ash’s cheeks became slightly more pronounced.

“So Dawn was right!” Cynthia said, delighted. “That’s adorable. I can’t wait to meet her.”

Ash looked away. “Well, she’s in Hoenn right now,” he said.

 _Serena?_ Kukui pondered the name. He wasn’t completely sure, but it seemed that Cynthia was implying that Ash had a crush on this Serena, whoever she was. Ash had never mentioned her. But then, it was increasingly apparent that Ash was not generally very forthcoming with this sort of thing.

“Wait, who’s Dawn?” Lana asked.

“And who’s Serena?” said Mallow, watching Ash curiously.

“Dawn traveled with me in the Sinnoh region,” Ash answered.

“She was one of the friends who stayed with me in Undella Town,” Cynthia added.

“And Serena traveled with me last year in Kalos.” Ash said.

“It’s too bad I didn’t meet her then,” Cynthia said. “Or the other friends you made there. Diantha had nothing but good things to say about you all.”

Another new name. Kukui found himself exchanging a glance with Dahlia, who looked just as baffled and fascinated as he felt. The students probably weren’t aware of the significance of the name Diantha, but if Kukui wasn’t mistaken, that was the name of the Kalos Champion. Was it possible Ash knew _another_ Champion?

“Wait, back up,” said Ash. “You were there?”

Cynthia nodded. “Lance and I were called in to help with clean-up after…” she trailed off, but Ash nodded in understanding, something grim flashing over his face. “I wanted to find you and check on you, but I didn’t get the chance.”

“Oh,” Ash said.

Now all the students also looked baffled. Kukui felt as though he was missing half this conversation.

“I especially wanted to meet your Greninja,” Cynthia said. “But if it’s not with you, I suppose that will have to wait. Oh! That reminds me – do you have any other new Pokémon, Ash?”

Ash brightened, shaking off the confusing grimness from a moment before. “Yeah!” he swung his backpack off and flipped it open to show Cynthia the Pokémon sleeping inside.

Cynthia laughed at the sight. “And who’s this fellow?” she asked, petting Rowlet with one finger.

“This is Rowlet!” Ash said.

Rowlet blinked its eyes open sleepily, and peered up at the Champion. Cynthia smiled down at it. “It’s very nice to meet you, Rowlet,” she said.

Rowlet chirred happily, then lifted itself out of the backpack, flew once in a circle, and settled to perch on Ash’s head.

“There’s so many interesting Pokémon here in Alola,” Cynthia said. “I’ve never seen most of the Pokémon you all have with you in person.” She looked at Lillie, who was still holding Snowy. “Vulpix I recognize, of course, but I’ve never seen a white Vulpix. Is it an ice-type?”

Lillie nodded. “Yes, it is!” she said. “We were very impressed with your Glaceon earlier. Weren’t we, Snowy?”

“Vul!” Snowy agreed.

“I was really impressed with your Garchomp,” said Kiawe. “It’s such a strong Pokémon.”

“I thought Ms. Dahlia’s Ludicolo was really cool!” Lana interjected. “And it was so cute!”

Dahlia laughed. “It’s just Dahlia, Lana. Do you want to meet Ludicolo?”

“Yes, please!” Lana answered.

Dahlia pulled a Pokéball off her belt. “Come on out, Ludicolo!”

Cynthia followed suit. “Glaceon, Garchomp, come join us!”

The three new Pokémon materialized, much to the students’ awe.

“Hi, Garchomp!” Ash said. The fierce dragon-type Pokémon patted Ash on the head affectionately, greeting him and Pikachu with a pleased “Gar!”

Popplio hopped over to Ludicolo, and blew a bubble a bit larger than a basketball. Ludicolo watched with fascination as the bubble floated up to its eye level.

“Lo?” Ludicolo said, and poked the bubble. It popped, spraying water over both Ludicolo and Popplio.

Lana giggled as Popplio clapped its fins together. “Pop-pop-lio!”

Kukui laughed. “Why don’t all of you introduce your Pokémon to Cynthia and Dahlia? I’m sure you all have some Pokémon they haven’t seen before.”

“Great idea!” said Ash. “Everyone else, come on out!”

Lycanroc and Litten appeared, followed by the rest of the students’ Pokémon – excepting their partners, of course, as they were already out.

“Wow,” said Dahlia, inspecting Turtonator. “What a cool Pokémon! Fire-type?” she asked, directing the question at Kiawe.

Kiawe nodded. “Fire and dragon,” he specified.

Dahlia glanced from him to Charizard. “A fire-type trainer?” she asked. “Except for Marowak?”

“Alolan Marowaks are fire and ghost-types,” Kiawe said. “I’m a fire-type trainer. In battle, our fire burns as hot as the heart of Wela Volcano!”

Dahlia giggled. “Love the passion,” she said.

Dahlia’s Ludicolo inched up to Turtonator. “Co-lo?” it said, leaning in close and making a funny face.

Turtonator turned away, unimpressed.

Curiously, Ludicolo reached toward the spikes on Turtonator’s back. Kiawe spotted it a second too late, and his eyes went wide. “Wait, wait, no - ”

Ludicolo touched a spike, and the resulting explosion blackened its face and sent it reeling back a step. The blast also caught Dahlia standing nearby, and smudged her bright yellow shirt with black.

Dahlia looked at Ludicolo, then down at herself, and burst out laughing. “That was unexpected,” she said.

Kiawe grimaced. “That happens whenever someone touches Turtonator’s spikes,” he explained.

“Maro,” Marowak agreed.

“Good to know,” said Dahlia, dusting herself off.

Meanwhile, Cynthia’s Glaceon had approached Snowy and gently coaxed it into conversation. “Wow,” Lillie said, watching them. “You’re such a beautiful Pokémon!”

A few steps away, Sophocles introduced his Pokémon to Cynthia. “This is Togedemaru, and this is Charjabug,” he said.

“And this is Popplio,” Lana said.

Cynthia smiled. “I’ve never seen any of these Pokémon in person before. I can tell that you all have very strong bonds with your Pokémon.”

Sophocles blushed happily, and Lana smiled in delight.

Mallow patted Steenee on the head, and Steenee looked up at her with happiness shining in its eyes. “Nee!” it said.

“We do everything together,” said Mallow.

“It shows,” said Cynthia.

Cynthia’s attention flitted back to Ash’s Pokémon. “Litten I recognize,” she said. “But Ash, what Pokémon is this?” she indicated Lycanroc.

Ash ran his fingers through Lycanroc’s fur. “This is Lycanroc,” he said.

“Lycanroc?” Cynthia said in surprise. “Is it shiny?”

Kukui smiled, enjoying that Cynthia was the one surprised for the first time that day.

“It’s actually Lycanroc’s Dusk form,” Kukui explained, coming to stand beside Cynthia.

The conversation caught Dahlia’s attention, and she came over to examine Lycanroc as well. “Dusk form?” she asked. “I thought Lycanroc only had a Daylight form and a Midnight form?”

Kukui laughed. “So did everyone else,” he answered. “At least until Ash managed to disprove that.”

Cynthia shook her head fondly. “That’s Ash, alright.”

*

Finally, Dahlia, Cynthia and Kiawe recalled their respective larger Pokémon so the group could continue to walk.

Dahlia fell into step next to Ash, having several questions to ask about Lycanroc’s Dusk form. Ash answered what he could, and deferred the rest to Kukui, who was only too happy to talk about his theories regarding Dusk Lycanroc.

“It looks very strong!” said Dahlia, directing another question back to Ash. “Do you have a lot of battle experience?”

“Lycanroc hasn’t battled that much compared to some of my other Pokémon,” Ash replied. “But it is really strong! We spend a lot of time training.”

“It definitely shows,” Dahlia said.

“Ash was the runner-up in the Kalos League last year,” Cynthia told Dahlia. “And the year before, he competed in the Unova League. Before that, the Sinnoh League. He’s quite an experienced young battler.”

Ash put a hand to the back of his head. “Well, when you put it like that…” he said.

“Didn’t you also compete in the Kanto League?” Sophocles asked.

Ash nodded. “But that was ages ago,” he said.

Kiawe raised an eyebrow. “And earlier, you mentioned that you challenged the Kanto Battle Frontier a few years ago. Where do you find the _time_ for all this stuff?” he asked.

Dahlia’s brow furrowed, as something suddenly clicked in her mind. “Wait a second!” she said, coming to a dead stop and staring at Ash. “You’re that kid!”

Ash blinked at her in confusion. “I’m what?”

“The one Scott wouldn’t shut up about! The one with the Pikachu!” Dahlia exclaimed. “I can’t believe it took me this long to put it together!”

 _Scott…_ Kukui thought he had heard that name recently… oh, yes, it was the name Ash had mentioned at the stadium. He glanced at Ash, who still looked perplexed.

“You’re the kid who beat the Pyramid King and then walked away from becoming a Frontier Brain!” Dahlia continued. “You beat Brandon!” Her voice took on a slightly awed quality at those words. She leaned in closer to Ash, peering at him as his expression shifted to understanding.

Ash raised a hand to the back of his head, smiling a bit sheepishly. “Oh. Yeah, that’s me.”

“Wait, what?” Kiawe stiffened, eyes wide. “You what?”

“It wasn’t a big deal,” Ash said.

“Not a big deal?” Dahlia scoffed. “Do you know how many people get the chance to become a Frontier Brain? And how many of them have turned it down?”

Ash chuckled nervously. “Uh… no?”

“None,” Dahlia said, matter-of-factly. “None, until you.”

“Oh,” Ash said. Everyone was staring at him. Kiawe still looked somewhat appalled.

Cynthia laughed. “That’s our Ash,” she said. “Always wanting to head out on the next journey, the next adventure… when Brandon told me you’d been offered the Brain position and turned it down, I wasn’t really surprised. Though I understand Scott is still hoping you’ll take it at some point.”

“I know,” Ash sighed. “I get messages from him every so often reminding me.” He laughed a little. “The one I got after the Lumiose Conference was written in all caps.”

“That does sound like him,” Cynthia said, nodding in agreement.

“Wait, back up,” Kiawe said. “Ash was offered a position as a Frontier Brain? How did he – how did you even manage that?”

Ash shrugged. “I completed the Battle Frontier,” he said. “If you beat all the Brains, you can become one yourself.”

“It doesn’t happen very often,” Dahlia said. “It’s also why each region has a different number of Brains. Sinnoh has five, and Kanto has seven.”

“Is that how you became a Frontier Brain?” Sophocles asked.

“Yes,” Dahlia answered. “I never even considered turning it down after I won.” She shook her head, still staring at Ash. “You really are an unusual kid, you know.”

Ash shrugged. “I still had more to learn from my journey,” he said. “I still do.”

Kukui caught the look on Cynthia’s face. She looked quite proud of Ash.

Ash shifted the conversation. “So does that mean you know the Kanto Frontier Brains?” he asked Dahlia. “I haven’t seen most of them in ages – well, I saw Brandon a couple years ago in Sinnoh…”

Dahlia nodded. “For sure! Lucy’s a really good friend of mine.”

“How is she?” Ash asked.

“She’s well! She’s raising a Dragonair now that’s getting really powerful.” Dahlia said.

“Cool!” Ash said. “I’m glad she’s doing good.”

“I’d love to see a Dragonair in person,” Lana said.

Kukui smiled as the conversation devolved into each of his students listing Pokémon they dreamed to see. Ash was the only one who didn’t speak up much – but then, he was the one who had seen the most Pokémon. And the one who had all sorts of achievements that he had never bothered to mention, as it was turning out.

It was hard for Kukui to picture his excitable boarder as a potential Frontier Brain, but then he remembered Ash battling against the Island Guardians, and battling alongside legendaries against Ultra Beasts, and the idea became more plausible.

Kukui shook his head. Apparently, he still had a lot to learn about Ash.

*

Their arrival at the Pokémon School was greeted with awe by the students and teachers on campus. Principal Oak was stunned and excited to see Champion Cynthia at his school.

“Would you mind answering some questions from the students?” Principal Oak asked Cynthia and Dahlia. “Only if you’d like to – it’s just such a rare opportunity.”

Cynthia and Dahlia glanced at each other and smiled. “We’d be happy to,” they answered together.

“But I wanna show you guys around first,” Ash said.

“That will give Principal Oak time to organize the other classes,” Professor Kukui said. “So I think that would be fine.”

The students cheered. Enthusiastically, they gave Cynthia and Dahlia a tour of campus, showing off their classroom, the slide, the lake full of Pokémon, the racetrack – and the Tauros, of course.

Dahlia greeted the Tauros enthusiastically, and the students watched in fascination as she inspected them.

Cynthia came to stand next to Kukui. “You have a great school here,” she said with a smile.

“Thanks,” said Kukui.

“You know,” Cynthia continued, with her eyes on Ash, “I never really would have pictured Ash in a place like this, but I think it’s been good for him. He deserves the chance to live like a normal teenager for a little while.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” said Kukui. “Although…” Kukui thought about Tapu Koko, and Ultra Beasts and Solgaleo, and continued. “Ash’s experience here hasn’t always been the most normal, but I think he’s been happy.”

Cynthia sighed. “Things are never quite normal with Ash,” she said. “But I still think this place has been good for him. _You’ve_ been good for him.” She looked at Kukui directly. “Thank you for that.”

“You’re welcome,” Kukui said honestly.

*

The question-and-answer session was going well. The crowd of students had plenty of questions for a real-live Champion and another trainer who had battled her head on.

Cynthia and Dahlia answered the kids patiently, with smiles on their faces. It was a stark change from how they had behaved faced with questions from all those reporters earlier, and it made Kukui glad to see. Kukui’s own students mostly stayed quiet, for obvious reasons.

Finally, one of the kids – Kukui was pretty sure she was from Calla’s class – asked a question that Kukui really should have expected.

“Can we see a battle?”

Cynthia and Dahlia shared a long look, communicating without words. A moment later, they turned back to the students.

“Yes,” Cynthia said. “But we’ve already battled each other today.” She sent Dahlia a smile.

Dahlia returned it, and then looked at Ash. “Ash,” she called. “I’d like to battle you, if you’d be willing.”

Ash shot up. “We’d love to!” he answered.

“Pika pika!” Pikachu agreed from Ash’s shoulder.

Excited whispers passed through the crowd of students.

Kiawe stood up as well, clenching his fists in nervousness. Kukui thought he had a good idea of what Kiawe was going to say.

“If Ms. Dahlia is going to battle Ash… Champion Cynthia, will you do me the honor of battling Turtonator and I?”

Cynthia looked surprised for a second, and then smiled fiercely. “I will,” she said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's hard to balance so many characters in one scene! I also think this ended up feeling a bit rushed, but honestly, I'm not sure how to fix it.
> 
> Some of you may have noticed that the chapter count has gone up. Once Chapter 2 passed 4000 words and I realized I still had two battles, a beach scene, and a conversation about legendaries to write, I decided I'd be better off just adding a third chapter.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it! I'd love to hear what you think down in the comments, and of course feel free to come say hi to me on [tumblr](https://kimirce.tumblr.com/) \- and check out my [Pokémon fic snippets](https://kimirce.tumblr.com/tagged/pokemon-fic-snippet) there!


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